Carpet binding and cutting apparatus

ABSTRACT

An apparatus for automatically severing a carpet binding and thread following a sewing operation which attaches the binding to the carpet. The carpet is conveyed on an elongated table through a sewing machine. A spring-urged feeler arm extends upwardly through the table and is normally depressed by the carpet as it moves through the machine. As the trailing end of the carpet passes over the feeler arm, the arm springs upwardly, thereby cutting the binding and thread at that point and turning off the sewing machine.

United States Patent Walter Johnson, Jr.

Rte. 1, Box 38-A, Glasgow, Va. 24555 796,381

Feb. 4, 1969 Jan. 12, 1971 lnventor Appl. No. Filed Patented CARPET BINDING AND CUTTING APPARATUS 4 Claims, 6 Drawing Figs.

US. Cl. 112/137 Int. Cl D05b 37/04 Field of Search 1 12/ 1 30, 137, 138, 9; 12/59.5, 20

References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS 1,946,241 2/1934 Sailer 112/137 2,652,166 9/1953 Johnson 12/59.5X 2,755,492 7/1956 Vachon 12/59.5 3,176,638 4/1965 Goppert 112/137X Primary Examiner-Patrick D. Lawson Attorney-Robert G. McMorrow ABSTRACT: An apparatus for automatically severing a carpet binding and thread following a sewing operation which attaches the binding to the carpet. The carpet is conveyed on an elongated table through a sewing machine. A spring-urged feeler arm extends upwardly through the table and is normally depressed by the carpet as it moves through the machine. As the trailing end of the carpet passes over the feeler arm, the arm springs upwardly, thereby cutting the binding and thread at that point and turning off the sewing machine.

CARPET BINDING AND CUTTING APPARATUS BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention r 1 This invention relates to a carpet binding apparatus and more particularly to an automatic cutting device which cuts the binding and thread in response tomovement of a feeler arm located opposite the cutting device.

2. Description of the Prior Art Numerous devices have been employed in the past for cutting material after it has passed througha sewing machine. These devices oftenitake the form of power-operated knives positioned above a cutting block and actuated when the machine operator presses a button at'the precise point at which the material is to be cut. Other devices take the form of scissors which are moved by elaborate mechanisms transverse to the direction of movementjof the material in response to a command from the machine operator. These prior art devices are often costly because of their complexity and require considerable maintenance.

In addition, most prior art devices require the constant attention of the machine operator who must watch not only the sewing operation but also for the precise point at which the material is to be cut and then actuate the cutter.

SUMMARY onrm'z; INVENTION This invention may be summarized as a carpet binding machine having an automatic cutting apparatus. The invention eliminates the heretofore undesirable features of the prior art devices by providing a carpet binding and cutting apparatuswhich is fully automatic anddoes not require the constant attention of the machine operator. I

More specifically, the carpet is'conveyed on an elongated table which has rollers forming the top surface thereof. A continuous motor-driven conveyor belt is located at one end of the table for removing the sewn carpet from the sewing area.

A sewing machine is positioned on oneside of the table such that the sewing machine needle is positioned over one edge of the passing carpet. The binder material is automatically positioned around the edge of the carpet and is sewn thereto as the carpetpasses the sewing machine.

If the carpet is fed to the sewingmachine from alarge roll, a slit is provided perpendicular to the edge of the roll. The slit runs approximately a third of the distance across the carpet and is at a point in the carpet where a specific length of the carpet will be cut from the roll.

A spring-urged feeler arm extends upwardly through the table into thepath of the carpet as it leaves the. sewing machine. The feeler arm is normally depressed by the carpet as it moves across the table. Whenever the end of the carpet or one of the aforementioned slits passes over the feeler arm, the feeler arm springs up and closes an electrical circuit.

Closure of the electrical circuit energizes a motor which is connected to a cutting device. The cutting device consists of a a blade which is positioned opposite the feeler arm and transverse to-the direction of travel of 'thecarpet. As the motor rotates, the cutting blade is brought down to effectively sever the binding and thread at that point. As the feeler springs up, the energizing circuit to the sewing machine is interrupted thus stopping the sewing machine. A floor mounted foot pedal is connected to the feeler arm by means of a'chain such that depression of the pedal withdraws the feeler arm to a position below the table. As the feeler arm is withdrawn, the cutter blade motor is deenergized and the sewing machine is again started. I I

The elongated table is alsoprovided with a motor-driven turntable located opposite the sewing machine. Rotation of the tumtablefeeds the carpet evenly to the sewing machine.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS FIGQI is a perspective view of the carpet binding machine and automatic cuttingapparatus of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is an end view of the automatic cutting apparatus taken about lines 2-2 of FIG. 1.

FIG. 3 is a top view of'the portion of the table containing the automatic cutting apparatus.

FIG. 4 is a sectional view of the feeler arm of the present invention taken about lines 44 of FIG. 2.

FIG. 5 is a sectional view of the turntable employed in the present invention.

FIG. 6 is a schematic representation of the wiring diagram employed in the present invention.

DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT Referring now to the drawing, drawings. a carpet binding apparatus is shown generally at l. The apparatus consists of a table having sides 2 between which are rotatably mounted rollers 4. A sewing machine 6 is positioned adjacent the table and above the edge of a carpet 8 which is fed'past the needle. A binder material 10 in' the form of a tape is positioned around the edge of the carpet 8and sewn thereto'b'y means of the sewing machine 6.

The carpet 8 is provided with slits l2 whose function will be described later. A turntable having a circular platform 14 is positionedopposite the sewing machine 6 and is mounted between the sides 2 by means of a bracket 16. A motor 18 is connected to the turntable platform 14 by means of a universal joint 20. Rollers 22 are rotatably mounted on brackets 24, 26 connected to the motor 18. The rollers 22 rotatably support the turntable platform 14 at its outer edge 28.

A feeler arm 30 is mounted between two of the rollers 4 and is capable of extendingabove the rollers 4 into the path ofthe carpet 8. Thefeeler arrii30 is secured to a shaft 32 which is rotatably mounted between supports 34,34. A coil spring 36 engages the feeler arm 30 and the base 38, to bias the feeler arm 30'upwardly through the rollers 4 into the path of the carpet 8. A lever 40 is secured to one end of the shaft 32 and has a chain 42 connected between the end of the lever 40 and a foot pedal 44mounted on the floor. A pair of electrical contacts 46 are closed whenever the feeler arm 30 is extended to its fully upright condition to energize the cutting device. Two more sets of controls 48 and 50 are opened whenever the feeler arm 30 is extended to its fully upright condition to deenergize either the sewing machine 6 or the turntable motor 18 in amanner to be more fully described later. A housing 52 supports the feeler arm30and the associated sets of contacts 46',- 48 and 50 and is secured to sides 2 by means of bolts 54.

A cutting device having a blade 56-is-positioned opposite the feeler arm 30 and is 'pivotably mounted by means of a pin 57 on a bracket 58. The top portion of bracket 58 is secured to the side 2 by means'of bolt 54. The bottomportion of bracket 58 is secured to a base 60whicli alsohas' mounted thereon a drive motor 62.'The drive motor 62-has' a disc 64 secured to its rotating shaft. An arm" having a first portion 66 is rotatably secured atone endto the disc 64 in an oficenter position. A second portion68 of the arm has a slot 70 formed therein to permit adjustment of one portion relative to the other portion. A bolt 72 rides in slot 70 and holds the two portions*66,*68 together. The other end of the second portion 68 is pivotably secured to the cutter blade 56 by means of a pin 740A spring 69 connected between the bolt 72 and the bracket 58 keeps the arm portions 66,68 in their lowermost'position. As can be seen, as the disc 64 rotates, the cutter blade 56 will pivot on pin 57 in an up and down motion with respect to the edge of carpet 8.

As the cutter blade 56 is moved in a downward directing it severs the binding material 10 as well asthe thread. A recess .i'notor 82 can be energized independently of the rest of the circuit. Three switches 98,100 and 102 are each connected in series with pilot lights 104, 106 and 108, respectively, and the three series circuits are connected in parallel with each other between the power lines 90,92.

Switch 98 connects power line 90 to switch 50 on the feeler arm shaft 32. Switch 50 is also connected to sewing machine 6 and power line 92 via a sewing machine foot switch 110. Switch 100 connects power line 90 to switch 48 on the feeler arm shaft 32. Switch 48 is then connected to the turntable motor 18 which in turn is connected to power line 92. Switch 102 connects the power line 90 to switch 46 located on the feeler arm 30. Switch 46 is also connected to the cutter motor 62 and power line 92. A switch 112 is also provided to directly connect the turntable motor 18 to the power lines 90,92 efiectively override the effect of switches 48 and 100.

The operation of the carpet binding machine and cutter apparatus will now be described. Switch 96 is closed to start the conveyor 80. Cutter return pedal 44 is depressed thus closing switches 48 and 50 on the feeler arm shaft 32 and opening switch 46. Closure of switches 98 and 100 energizes the turntable motor 18 and the sewing machine 6 which begins to sew the binding 10 on the carpet 8. As the carpet passes through sewing machine 6 and over feeler arm 30, foot pedal 44 is released and switch 102 is closed to provide automatic operation. As the trailing end of carpet 8 or a slit 12 (if the carpet is fed from a continuous roll) passes over feeler arm 30, feeler arm 30 is permitted to spring upwardly thus closing switch 46 and opening switches 48 and 50. The closure of switch 46 energizes the cutter motor 62 which in turn moves the cutter blade 56 into engagement with the binder material 10 to cut it at that point. The opening of switches 48 and 50 deenergizes the turntable motor 18 and sewing machine 6. If the binding material 10 is to be sewn on a circular-shaped piece of carpet, switch 112 can be closed to provide continuous energization of the turntable motor 18.

While the invention has been particularly shown and described with reference to a preferred embodiment thereof, it will be understood by those skilled in the art that various changes in form and details may be made therein without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention.

lclaim:

l. A carpet binding apparatus comprising:

a table for supporting a carpet to be bound;

binding means adjacent said carpet for securing a binding material to the edges of said carpet;

means in said table for feeding said carpet to said binding means;

cutter means adjacent the edge of said carpet for cutting said binding material at a predetermined point on said carpet;

feeler means responsive to the pressure of said carpet for actuating said cutter means at said predetermined point on said carpet;

the feeler means comprising a feeler arm which is held in a retracted position by the pressure of said carpet and is biased into an extended position by the arrival of said predetermined point on said carpet; and

the binding means and carpet feeding means being energized when said feeler arm is in retracted position and said binding means and said carpet feeding means are deenergized, and said cutter means being energized when said feeler arm is in said extended position.

2. The invention of claim 1, wherein: the predetermined point on the carpet comprises a slit formed therein.

3. A carpet binding apparatus comprising:

a table for supporting a carpet to be bound;

binding means adjacent said carpet for securing a binding material to the edge of said carpet;

cutter means adjacent the edge of said carpet for cutting said binding material at a predetermined point on said carpet;

feeler means responsive to the pressure of said carpet for actuating said cutter means at said predetermined point on said carpet; and the cutter means comprising a cutter blade pivotally mounted adjacent the edge of said carpet and capable of moving into engagement with said binding material to cut said binding material at said predetermined point.

4. A carpet binding apparatus comprising:

a table for supporting a carpet to be bound;

binding means adjacent said carpet for securing a binding material to the edge of said carpet;

means in said table for feeding said carpet to said binding means;

feeler means responsive to the pressure of said carpet for actuating said cutter means at said predetermined point on said carpet; and

the means in said table for feeding said carpet to said binding means being a rotatable platform. 

1. A carpet binding apparatus comprising: a table for supporting a carpet to be bound; binding means adjacent said carpet for securing a binding material to the edges of said carpet; means in said table for feeding said carpet to said binding means; cutter means adjacent the edge of said carpet for cutting said binding material at a predetermined point on said carpet; feeler means responsive to the pressure of said carpet for actuating said cutter means at said predetermineD point on said carpet; the feeler means comprising a feeler arm which is held in a retracted position by the pressure of said carpet and is biased into an extended position by the arrival of said predetermined point on said carpet; and the binding means and carpet feeding means being energized when said feeler arm is in retracted position and said binding means and said carpet feeding means are deenergized, and said cutter means being energized when said feeler arm is in said extended position.
 2. The invention of claim 1, wherein: the predetermined point on the carpet comprises a slit formed therein.
 3. A carpet binding apparatus comprising: a table for supporting a carpet to be bound; binding means adjacent said carpet for securing a binding material to the edge of said carpet; cutter means adjacent the edge of said carpet for cutting said binding material at a predetermined point on said carpet; feeler means responsive to the pressure of said carpet for actuating said cutter means at said predetermined point on said carpet; and the cutter means comprising a cutter blade pivotally mounted adjacent the edge of said carpet and capable of moving into engagement with said binding material to cut said binding material at said predetermined point.
 4. A carpet binding apparatus comprising: a table for supporting a carpet to be bound; binding means adjacent said carpet for securing a binding material to the edge of said carpet; means in said table for feeding said carpet to said binding means; feeler means responsive to the pressure of said carpet for actuating said cutter means at said predetermined point on said carpet; and the means in said table for feeding said carpet to said binding means being a rotatable platform. 